Priceline Hotel: 4* London (Regents Park-Baker Street) Marriott Maida Vale

[Mike A]

Hi,

New member, looking at staying in London early March (not bidding yet) and in looking over some of the other tips and bid here, I also look at the tripadvisor info for the hotels. I came across one that concerns me abit and wanted to know if it was either a FUD type posting or something that sometimes happens and what the best way to handle such a situation would be.

specifically the latest review posted for the Grosvenor house in london:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g1...on_England.html

The poster says he was charged an additional $150 per day for his pre-paid stay.

I understand many places charge parking fees, may place a hold on a credit card for phone, and other such chargeback items, but the $150 seemed extremely excessive.

I figured if we could get a really nice place like the Grosvenor House for $130 or less it would be great instead of paying nearly the same amount for a small B&B, but would not be happy ending up paying double once we arrived.

Are there "Bad" 4* or 5* priceline properties in the central zones of London that would make it a concern to bid those?

by central zones, 1,2,6,9,10 [Marble Arch, Finsbury, Mayfair, City-london Bridge, Westminster]

When places list Internet, is there any way to know if it requires additional fee? Even most of the hotel's own sites don't specify if it costs extra, just that they have it available.

I've seen the directions for posting for specific tips on bidding and will do so after some discussion with the Mrs.

Thank You,

Mike

[thereuare]

Something doesn't sound right as the hotel would have to give some explanation as to what the charges were for... hotels just don't bill $150 because they 'feel like it'.

The reviewer mentions the "coffee bar wasn't staffed"... perhaps s/he attended breakfast and was charged for it, thinking it was/should have been included in the room rate? Sometimes you need to take reviews with a grain of salt. :)

[Romelle]

I've used Priceline several times for hotels in London and elsewhere. I've never had an odd fee in London.

The only place I ran into a questionable charge was San Juan, PR where they tacked on a "resort" fee for a downtown 3*. And I was able to convince them to take it off my bill, although it took a letter to corporate headquarters.

I think you can assume internet will be on a charge basis, and you can further assume the hotel internet rate will be quite high. On the other hand, there are lots of modestly priced internet cafes in London, and once I even found a public library with free internet.

You also can pretty much assume breakfast is NOT included with PL 4*s in London, and it is expensive. But just walk outside a bit and there are wonderful muffin shops and other good options. It always amazes me to see the little "cities" of stores that have developed below ground level around the underground stations. Lots of quick reasonable food options there, and then those grocery stores in the basements of the big department stores.

Regarding "bad" hotels, the hotel I've read the most griping about seems to be the Copthorne Tara in Kensington. You might read the reviews on this one and some others and see if any of the negatives happen to be your particular hot buttons. I've actually stayed at the dreaded Copthorne a couple times, and haven't had any problems with it. In fact, was quite happy with the value for the price and the good location.

Romelle

PS - I've gotten wrong charges on US hotel bills occasionally. Mini-bar items I didn't take, and phone calls I didn't make. I've always been able to get them removed on the spot by just being very firm and persistent, but polite. You shouldn't have any problems, and if you do, they most likely will be minor and easily resolved.

[Mike A]

I didn't think it was likely that the extra charges mentioned in the review were typical since I didn't see it mentioned in the other recent reviews, or mentioned here either, but just wanted to make sure others hadn't had similar experience.

As Kensington is outside my initial searching that hotel shouldn't be much worry.

Another question along the same lines, is there a large difference between 4* and 5* in the central zones?

Am I likely to be able to get a 5* for 140 in the central zones? for March 5th-11th

or a 4* under $100? in general would it be worth the extra $

For reference we typically stay at Drury Inns. Though it appears we wouldn't be getting the breakfast buffet of theirs included.

[thereuare]

I'd guess that $140 will not likely be enough for a 5* in the zone(s) you indicated, but if that's what you want, it's worth a shot.

What is it that you're looking for from this stay, as Drury Inn properties are usually in the 2.5*/3* range, so what is it that you expect from a 5* property? While 5* properties usually have nicer accoutrements (softer towels, higher thread count sheets, higher end furniture, etc) you typically don't get the value items that often accompany the mid-range properties (breakfast is almost never free (and expensive, especially in Europe), internet comes at a cost, etc)

Let us know when/how you'd like to proceed and we'll take it from there.

Please use these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your travel purchases.

[WillTravel]

What I have seen happen is that a hotel charges your personal credit card for the stay, rather than charging Priceline's credit card number like they are supposed to do. Then you have to contact the hotel, explain their error, and get them to refund the charge. That would have been my guess as to what the poster in that review had happen, except that he says they charged for "incidentals".

[Mike A]

No real expectations. I'm not as concerned about the * rating as I would be the general quality and area, not likely to take advantage of any Spa, workout room, etc. Originally had been looking at B&Bs but many of the recommended ones are 80GBP on up for ensuite double ($130) or further out from the sights. I'm pretty sure we can grab our own breakfast for under $30/day if we could get a good room at a good hotel in the central regions for around $100/night. (up to ~$140), which I've seen various wins for that price range. I can try over a few days as well.

This is our vacation, 1 week London, 1 week Ireland. I am aware that London is an expensive city as well, our sight seeing ideas are across the city, so no particular inner region is better than the others for that. I've been to London before (though it was 10years ago) and am familiar with how easy it is to get around (stayed with friends, so not familiar with any of the lodging)

I think the issue with coming down to the 3* is that they can vary wildly in quality, and if you don't know which hotel you are getting you can get a dump. I would rather pay a bit more to know we aren't likely to get a place with dirty sheets and leaking bathroom fixtures. It doesn't have to be a PRICELINE NYOP, I'll use the HOTWIRE links as well if that would be more reliable for the price range and locations.

Open to suggestions and ready to start the bid process if recommended.

Primary landmark boundaries for where we are looking to stay, probably not further west than Hyde Park/Kensington Palace, not much north of Regent's Park/Camden market, not much East of Tower Bridge, and not much south of the river, except the South Bank area may be ok.

WillTravel, That sounds like a possible explanation of how something like that could happen. He could have meant the whole amount, they could have been explaining why it didn't match the rate he expected.

Thank you,

Mike

[Romelle]

Open to suggestions and ready to start the bid process if recommended.

Primary landmark boundaries for where we are looking to stay, probably not further west than Hyde Park/Kensington Palace, not much north of Regent's Park/Camden market, not much East of Tower Bridge, and not much south of the river, except the South Bank area may be ok.

I don't know if you've looked at the PRICELINE maps yet but, if you haven't, this would be a good time. From your definition above, figure out which of the zones fit within it. And watch out for the very outer edges too, since PRICELINE can give you a hotel anywhere within the shaded area.

It took me a while to realize this, but you can zoom in on the PL maps and spot specific streets. More importantly, you can spot those Underground stations and see how far you might be from one if you were in the outer edges of some PL area.

Do take a look at HOTWIRE for your dates. One can usually do a little better via PL. I think it is further out than your boundaries, but there is even a 4* Ealing - Hammersmith - Brentford Hotel for $69 and a 5* Regents Park - Baker Street - Camden Lock Hotel for $179. Pretty amazing for London. Your goal of under $100 for a 4* or under $140 for a 5* may well work.

Romelle

[Mike A]

Yes, had found the PRICELINE central zones, 1,2,6,9,10 [Marble Arch, Finsbury, Mayfair, City-london Bridge, Westminster] to fit well within those boundaries, and some others partially within them.

[thereuare]

It doesn't have to be a PRICELINE NYOP, I'll use the HOTWIRE links as well if that would be more reliable for the price range and locations.

It basically comes down to what you want for this stay... PRICELINE is usually a little cheaper than HOTWIRE, but HOTWIRE gives you the ability to take an educated guess as to the property being offered.

I'd start with a HOTWIRE search, see if any hotels are within your desired zone(s), star rating, and budget, from there we can try to help you ID them, at which point you can decide to take one of the HOTWIRE properties or try for a better price thru PRICELINE.

Please use these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your travel purchases.

[Mike A]

Got the London Marriott Maida Vale (booked on 2/4/10)

3/5/10 - 3/11/10

Room Cost (avg. per room, per night): $117.00 (USD)

Number of Rooms: 1

Number of Nights: 6

Room Subtotal: $702.00 (USD)

Taxes and Fees: $139.56 (USD)

Total Room Cost: $841.56 (USD)

Pleased with the choice, and think it is a decent price.

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to see you're happy with the results and the deal you received.

Thank you for sharing your win with the board.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

Enjoy your stay.